Whiffletree



UNITED STATES PATE T QFFICE.

JOHN DICKEY CASON 'AND' HUNTER JAMISON, OF NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE.

WHIFFLETREE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 560,341, dated May 19, 1896.

Application filed November 29, 1895. Serial No. 570,484. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, JOHN DICKEY CASON and J AMES HUNTER J AMISON, citizens of the United States, residing at Nashville, in the county of Davidson and State of Tennessee, have invented a new and useful Whiffletree, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in whiffietrees, and has for its object to simplify and improve the construction shown and described in the patent granted November 22, 1887, to B. O. Seaton, No. 373,488, in which patent we are at the present time interested. The above patent has been found to illustrate and describe a construction which is objectionable and to a certain extent impracticable in that, by reason of the form of the spring for equalizing or cushioning the draft, the whifiietree is not adapted to the various kinds of platform. transfer-wagons, omnibuses, (to. Certain changes have been found, therefore, to be indispensable, and these comprise the present invention.

The invention consists in certain novel features and details of construction and arran gement of parts, as hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the drawings, and finally pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improved whittletree. Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal section through one end thereof. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of one of the angle-irons on the whifiietree ends.

Similar numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in the several figures of the drawings.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, 1 designates the whiffletree proper, and 2 a draft-cushioning spring, made, preferably, of a flat steel bar, secured centrally to the rear edge of the whiffletree 1 by means of bolts or other suitable fastenings passing through the spring and whiftletree and also through a washer-plate secured to the front edge of the whiflietree. The draft-cushioning spring 2 is made either perfectly straight or substantially so, while the opposite ends of the whiffletree are deflected forward, so that their extremities are spaced a distance from the spring equal to the amount of play which it is desired to give to the spring.

3 designates a pair of angle-irons which are secured to the opposite ends of the whiffletree, each of said irons comprising, essentially, a longitudinal portion extending behind the whiffletree, a transverse or forwardlyextending portion crossing the end of the whiffletree, and a lateral perforated ear or eye 4, through which reoiprocates the shank of a draft-hook 5. It will be understood that two of these draft-hooks are employed, one at each end of the whiffietree. Each draft-hook is provided at its rear end with an eye, which enters the slotted end of the spring 2 and receives a pivotal bolt 6. The end of the spring is extended beyond the corresponding end of the whiffletree, and, While being slotted to receive the eye of the draft-hook, is also recurved or coiled upon opposite sides of the slot therein to form eyes for the pivotal bolt 6, in a manner clearly illustrated in the drawings. The shank of the draft-hook lies substantially parallel to the end of the whiffietree, or perpendicular to the draft-spring, and a coiled spring 7 surrounds the shank of the hook between the spring and the ear or eye 4. The backward movement of the ends of the spring is limited by means of a pair of metal loops or guards 8, bolted or otherwise secured to the whiffietree adjacent to its ends.

9 indicates a pair of face-plates secured to the upper and lower sides of the whiffletree centrally thereof and formed with verticallyalined central openings for the reception of the swivel-bolt by whichthe whiffletree is secured to the vehicle.

The construction above described cushions the draft and the sudden jerking of the team in the same manner as described in the former patent referred to, and at the same time attains several important advantages thereover. By making the draft-cushionin g spring straight less room is taken up in rear of the whiffletree, and the latter is adapted to be used upon all platform transfer-wagons, o1nnibuses, &c. The spring, by reason of its being straight, is also less liable to fracture. The angle-irons at the ends of the whiftletree prevent the liability of such ends to split and serve to materially reinforce and brace the same and to remove the major portion of the strain from the ends of the tree. By reason of the draft-hooks projecting in advance of the Whiffletree and the forward inclination of the end portions of the Whiffletree ample room is afforded for the swinging of the sin gletrees, thus obviating wear of the latter against the former.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is- The combination with a whiflietree having its ends deflected forward of the normal plane, of a pair of angle-irons secured to the opposite ends thereof and each comprising a 1ongitudinal portion secured to the rear side of the whiffletree, a transverse or forwardly-extending portion covering and protecting the JOHN DIGKEY CASON. JAMES HUNTER J AMISON.

\Vitnesses J AS. J. PRYOR, J. G. FISHER. 

